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Olivia has supported our hunger-relief work for over 8 years. What started as a monthly gift to ensure daily meals for our neighbors facing hunger has blossomed into support that will feed families, children and seniors in perpetuity.
“I’ve been so impressed by the work you do,” she shares. “You go the extra mile to ensure families have food.” As a retired teacher, she shared that she was amazed by the perseverance of children despite being hungry. But also shared the importance of programs like ours because, “children can’t learn when they don’t have full stomachs.”

In 2019, Olivia named Second Harvest in her will as part of her estate planning. Her gift type is one of the simplest ways to have a lasting impact beyond her lifetime. By stating the details of which assets – cash, investments, personal property – she wanted to give, she’s now ensured her ongoing support of children, seniors and families throughout the Northland.

We’re grateful for friends like Olivia. If you’d like to learn more about how
you can join her, leave your legacy, and feed future generations, please reach
out to our Director of Philanthropy, Trisha Zimmerman.

At his home, Frank displays a pair of glasses with splintered lenses and an ID badge, its corners crinkled and brown from flame. “I was a licensed electrician when I was only 22 years old,” Frank shares. “I had built up an electrical business that was making $2 million a year.”

In October 2007, Frank was finishing an industrial electrical project that had taken months. He was on the last day of that project, which involved rewiring transformers. “I was holding a 12,000-volt cable, it energized, and started arcing,” he said. “The transformer exploded and blew me 30 feet.” In just a second, Frank received a nearly fatal electrical shock. He survived but sustained a traumatic brain injury (TBI). “I couldn’t think, or even wire a single pole relay,” he shares. “It’s like I just forgot. I can’t multitask like I did. It takes someone with a TBI so much longer to complete tasks.”

Unable to work, Frank refused to sit at home. He connected with a program that empowers people who are living with disabilities. Frank joined a skills class and received extra food from the program. “The food helps supplement the food I purchase, so that way my fixed income can actually ‘fix’ me during the month,” he laughs.

Now, Frank is teaching an electrical skills class at a jail, and is excited for what’s next. “I do feel I’m not done yet. There’s supposed to be more. My life continues.”

We couldn’t provide food to neighbors like Frank without partners like you. Here’s a sampling of others who generously support our hunger-relief work:

• Blandin Foundation
• Joan M. Wismer Foundation
• Northland Foundation
• Otto Bremer Trust
• Walmart